A shape-shifting musical caravan where folk traditions, world music, cinematic storytelling, steampunk invention, and circus spectacle collide.
Led by Mad Maestro Chad Canfield, Vardo brings together musicians, performers, and wonderfully curious misfits for an experience that refuses to stay inside one genre—or one century.
Born as a recording project in 2015, Vardo has grown into a living musical caravan. American roots mingle with traditions from around the world. Cinematic textures meet theatrical invention. Folk instruments share the stage with steampunk characters, circus energy, and a healthy dose of beautiful unpredictability.
Come for the music. Stay for the adventure.
Vardo is intentionally shape-shifting. The lineup can change with the performance, bringing together artists with deep roots in folk, world music, composition, improvisation, theater, and rhythm.
For nearly 30 years, Chad has built a musical world through compositions designed to evoke emotion and wonder. His work has appeared in film, television, immersive events, and other media, while his songwriting serves as a sonic journal of storytelling, healing, and imagination.
Brian Grimm (they/them) is a Wisconsin-based composer, performer, and sound designer with a deep passion for instruments and musical traditions from around the world. Their work spans international performance, original theater scores, jazz, folk, experimental music, and collaborative sound design. grimmusik.com
Born in Chongqing, China, Emay began piano at five and guzheng at seven under the guidance of her father. An award-winning musician and teacher, she now performs and teaches guzheng, piano, and Chinese culture in the Madison, Wisconsin area.
A member of the Vardo caravan featured across its world-folk and theatrical performances. More biography and performance details coming soon.
Mike is a multi-instrumentalist, performer, artist, and writer from the Kenosha area. From old-time string music with Uncle Zesty’s Old Time Bootknockers to original songs as Rusty Chicken, his work is grounded in American roots music and a long-standing curiosity for traditional music from around the world.
Randy has studied a wide range of drumming traditions since childhood. His work explores rhythm as both musical expression and a grounding practice, using the heartbeat pulse to create space for reflection, release, and connection.
“Mad” Chad Canfield leads Vardo as a composer, songwriter, performer, and ringmaster for the unexpected. Before Vardo, Chad fronted The Richard Cranium Sideshow from 2002–2014. That sense of theater never really left—it simply found a bigger caravan.
Vardo is built to feel less like watching a band and more like encountering a traveling world that has suddenly appeared in front of you. The instruments, costumes, characters, and stories change—but the invitation stays the same: step closer and see where the music takes you.
Performance, event, and booking information can live here once Chad confirms the preferred contact address, social links, and current performance calendar.
Booking Details Coming Soon